The Moritz Grossmann Atum | family history
The Atum is Moritz Grossmann's core time-only dress reference and the watch the brand uses to demonstrate Glashütte movement finishing at its most deliberate. The in-house Caliber 100.0 is hand-wound, carries a German silver three-quarter plate, a hand-engraved balance cock, and brown-violet annealed hands that Grossmann produces using a heat-coloration process requiring precise temperature control. The patented Hand Setting system uses a proprietary crown mechanism that eliminates the risk of accidental hand displacement during time-setting. This is watchmaking for people who care about how the watch is made as much as how it looks.
Grossmann’s time-only dress family, named for the Egyptian deity of completion. Built around the in-house cal. 100.0 hand-wind: German silver three-quarter plate, hand-engraved balance cock, brown-violet annealed hands, and the brand’s patented Hand Setting system that stops and re-starts the movement cleanly without disturbing rate.
2013 · Atum introduction
Moritz Grossmann (revived in 2008) introduced the Atum in 2013 after establishing the Benu as the brand's entry point. The Atum represented Grossmann's upper-tier production: full three-quarter plate, hand-engraved components, the patented Hand Setting system. The 41mm case in stainless steel or precious metal carries the movement at a legible height.
No references from this era in the catalog yet.
2013–present · Core references and Pure variant
The Atum Pure (introduced 2018) is the most-requested reference in the family: a white dial, brass-and-black movement finishing, and a deliberately minimal presentation. The standard Atum carries the brown-violet annealed hands and the hand-engraved balance cock in gold. Both are hand-assembled in a small workshop in Glashütte by a team of fewer than 30 watchmakers.
How to read this family
Two honest questions for any Atum buyer:
- Moritz Grossmann or Nomos for a Glashütte dress watch? Nomos produces at higher volume, has stronger secondary-market liquidity, and prices below Grossmann. The Atum is the more-exclusive argument: fewer than 300 watches per year total from the manufacture, hand-engraved components, and finishing conventions closer to the 19th-century Glashütte tradition. For collectors who want maximum hand-finishing and exclusivity in Glashütte, Grossmann is the answer.
- What is the Hand Setting system? The Grossmann Hand Setting system uses a secondary pusher at 4 o'clock alongside the crown. To set the time, you depress the pusher, which disengages the hands from the gear train and allows safe setting without the risk of accidentally displacing a hand from its staff. It is a patented mechanism unique to Grossmann; no other production manufacturer uses it.
Related families: Benu · Tangente
References in this family
Which ref to buy
The Atum is Grossmann's slightly more accessible entry: a round dress watch with the same movement finishing standards as the Benu but in a more traditional, less open-worked presentation. The Pure version has a cut-out dial to show the movement.
- 1Open
Atum Pure: round 41mm dress watch, Grossmann caliber, open-worked dial in a more traditional case than the Benu.
- The case for it:
- The Atum Pure gives you Grossmann movement finishing in a rounder, more classically proportioned case than the Benu. For buyers who find the Benu case shape too specific, the Atum is the correct Grossmann.
- Consider instead if:
- The Benu is the more characteristic Grossmann design. If you are buying the brand for the first time, the Benu Pure communicates what Grossmann does more distinctly.
Rankings last reviewed 2026-06-18. Editorial perspective only. Not financial advice.